Design, Architecture, Gardens, Southern California Living

'Modern Way' symposium, garden tours this week

Home and garden events, classes and exhibitions for the week ahead are listed below. Suggest your own via reader comments. No store promotions and no frivolous links, please.

Feb. 23: A self-driven garden caravan sponsored by the Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden makes three stops in Ventura County: Nopalito Native Plant Nursery in Ventura for drought-tolerant, succulent and edible plants; Matilija Nursery in Moorpark for natives and irises; and a private garden in Somis designed by landscape architect Amy Nettleton. Part of the Thursday Garden Talks With Lili Singer. 10 a.m. to noon. $20. Registration required: (626) 821-4623.

Feb 24: To encourage public discourse about architecture, urban design and city planning, the Los Angeles chapter of the American Institute of Architects has coordinated a series of discussions with Los Angeles mayoral candidates. Moderated by Los Angeles City Planning Commission President Bill Roschen and Los Angeles Times Architecture Critic Christopher Hawthorne, the forums are meant to help the public learn more about each candidate's vision for the future. This week: Austin Beutner. 7 to 9 p.m. Free. Ronald F. Deaton Civic Auditorium, Los Angeles Police Department Administration Building, 100 W. 1st St., Los Angeles. Reservations required: www.aialosangeles.org.

Feb. 25: Internationally recognized bonsai masters share their passion for the art form in this annual event that includes exhibits, demonstrations, a “bonsai bazaar” and a live auction at 3 p.m. each day. Festivities 10:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Feb. 25 and 26. Included in regular admission of $6 to $20. Huntington Library, Art Collections and Botanical Gardens, 1151 Oxford Road, San Marino. (626) 405-2100.

Feb. 25: Descanso Gardens curator Wen Wang leads a guided walk, which provides an introduction to the coast live oak trees that are native to the gardens. 1 p.m. Included in regular admission of $3 to $8. 1418 Descanso Drive, La Cañada Flintridge. (818) 949-4200.

Midcentury design: “California Design, 1930-1965: Living in a Modern Way” features more than 300 objects including furniture, ceramics, metalwork, fashion and graphic design. Ends June 3. Regularly $10 to $15. Free admission to residents of L.A. County after 5 p.m. some evenings. Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 5905 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles. (323) 857-6010.

Photo: Recreation pavilion of Buff Straub & Hensman's the Mirman House in Arcadia. Photo is from “California Design, 1930-1965: Living in a Modern Way,” a Pacific Standard Time exhibition at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Credit: Julius Shulman / Julius Shulman Photography Archive, Research Library at the Getty Research Institute.